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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 16, 2020)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian A2 Thursday, January 16, 2020 Winter storms boost Northwest snowpack State’s snow water equivalent jumps to 79% of normal after recent storms By GEORGE PLAVEN Capital Press PORTLAND — It may have taken a bit longer than usual, but snow is finally starting to fly in the mountains across Oregon and Washington. That is good news for farmers and ranchers who depend on ample snowpack to replenish streams and fill reservoirs heading into the sum- mer irrigation season. In just two weeks, Oregon’s snow water equivalent — the amount of water contained within snowpack — has jumped from 45% of normal to 79% of normal statewide, thanks to recent winter storms dumping several feet of new snow in places like Mount Hood and Santiam Junction in the Cas- cade Range, and Emigrant Springs in the Blue Mountains of Northeast Oregon. The biggest improvement has come in the Hood, Sandy and Lower Deschutes basins, which were at 26% of normal snowpack on Dec. 30, 2019, and are now at 90% of normal as of Jan. 14. The Willamette Basin also increased from 26% to 83%, and the Uma- tilla, Walla Walla and Willow basins rose from 43% to 89%. Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Semitrucks travel along Interstate 84 amid the snow-covered Blue Mountains outside of Meacham last week. In just two weeks, Oregon’s snow water equivalent — the amount of water contained within snowpack — has jumped from 45% of normal to 79% of normal statewide, thanks to recent winter storms dumping several feet of new snow in places like Mount Hood and Santiam Junction in the Cascade Range, and Emigrant Springs in the Blue Mountains of northeast Oregon. cally one of the wettest months of the year, set records for lowest pre- cipitation at 34 out of 90 snowpack telemetry sites monitored by the agency. “The next three months will be critical in determining water sup- plies for the summer,” the NRCS reported. So far, so good as Old Man Win- ter has returned with a vengeance in January. Hydrologists with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service calculate “percent of nor- mal” by measuring the current snowpack against a 30-year aver- age from 1981-2010. The NRCS released its first Ore- gon Water Supply Outlook Report for 2020 on Jan. 9. At the time it was published, the state was grap- pling with an especially dry start to the water year — November, typi- Forecast for Pendleton Area TODAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY Last year saw something simi- lar unfold in Oregon. With snow- pack lagging into February, a series of storms pummeled the mountains and boosted snow water equivalent by 20-30%. Coupled with a heavy rains in April, conditions offered a much-needed reprieve from drought. Snowpack is a crucial source of water for farms, especially in East- ern Oregon where it rains far less Snow cuts communications at Crater Lake By LEE JUILLERAT For EO Media Group Mostly cloudy and cold Chilly with periods of sun 36° 25° 38° 31° Cloudy, a bit of snow; chilly Chilly with high clouds Cloudy and chilly PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 39° 31° 40° 28° 42° 31° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 36° 27° 39° 31° 40° 31° 42° 31° OREGON FORECAST 44° 34° ALMANAC Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Seattle Olympia 41/31 35/23 35/18 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 36/26 Lewiston 38/33 36/27 Astoria 43/32 Pullman Yakima 35/22 42/31 37/25 Portland Hermiston 40/33 The Dalles 36/27 Salem Corvallis 40/30 Yesterday Normals Records La Grande 39/19 PRECIPITATION John Day Eugene Bend 41/31 35/20 41/20 Ontario 43/24 Caldwell Burns 29° 14° 41° 28° 63° (1961) -10° (1950) 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date Albany 39/32 Trace 0.13" 0.62" 0.13" 0.18" 0.62" Today Boardman Pendleton Medford 40/27 Fri. WNW 4-8 WSW 6-12 SSW 3-6 S 6-12 SUN AND MOON Klamath Falls 35/17 Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2020 Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today 7:32 a.m. 4:38 p.m. none 11:13 a.m. Last New First Full Jan 17 Jan 24 Feb 1 Feb 8 NATIONAL EXTREMES Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 89° in Falfurrias, Texas Low -33° in Rudyard, Mont. NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. -10s -0s 0s showers t-storms 10s rain 20s flurries 30s snow 40s 50s ice 60s cold front E AST O REGONIAN — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211 Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed major holidays EastOregonian.com To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255 or go online to EastOregonian.com and click on ‘Subscribe’ East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday and postal holidays, by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Copyright © 2020, EO Media Group CRATER LAKE — Heavy snow has temporar- ily cut off communications at Crater Lake National Park. Telephone and internet ser- vice have been out at the park since early Monday morning with no estimate on when ser- vice might be restored. The road from park headquar- ters to Rim Village has been closed since Friday. The Rim Café and Gift Shop at Rim Village have also been closed. Sean Denniston, the park’s management assistant, had no estimate on when the road to the rim will be reopened because crews are concentrating on keeping the road from the South Entrance on Highway 62 from Fort Klamath and Klamath Falls open to park headquarters in Munson Valley. Some park staff live in park housing near Munson Valley. “Hopefully, it’s not too extended,” Denniston said of the telephone and inter- net outages, which has led to some employees working at home. Staff and their families living in the park are affected because most do not have sat- ellite internet. Only one lane from Fort Klamath to the South Entrance and Munson Valley was open Tuesday morning, but crews were working to widen the road Tuesday after- noon. Kirsten Harden, the park’s chief of management facilities, said crews are oper- ating two snowplows, two snowblowers and a grader. “Knock on wood, every- thing is running,” Harden said Tuesday afternoon. Highway 62 from Pros- pect and the Rogue Valley to Crater Lake’s south entrance was closed earlier this week because of fallen trees and heavy snow and was still closed Tuesday afternoon with no estimates on when the road might be reopened. Harden reported it had snowed 56 inches at the park headquarters weather station since Jan. 8. “The message is be pre- pared for winter conditions,” Denniston said of people planning to visit the park. He emphasized the need for cau- tion, noting, “Because many people tend not to be ade- quately preparing, our con- cern is for visitors who don’t have experience driving in the snow.” Because of the telephone and internet outages, the usual information sources, calling the park’s visitor center and checking the park’s website about road conditions are not available. People who do visit are always advised during winter months to have have vehicles with chains and/or traction tires, and to carry shovels and adequate clothing along with food and water. WINDS (in mph) 44/27 34/11 Trace 0.60" 0.81" 0.60" 0.12" 0.81" through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Pendleton 39/16 40/32 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date HERMISTON Enterprise 36/25 37/26 39° 20° 41° 27° 68° (1974) -8° (1907) PRECIPITATION Moses Lake 39/30 Aberdeen 35/22 31/17 Tacoma Yesterday Normals Records Spokane Wenatchee 39/32 than it does west of the Cascades. As snow melts, it trickles down into creeks and rivers, sustaining healthy stream flows while provid- ing irrigation supplies for crops and livestock. While the latest snowstorms are an encouraging sign, there is still a long way left to go. Scott Oviatt, snow survey super- visor for the NRCS in Portland, said conditions are a vast improve- ment over the end of December, when stream flows were just 53% of normal. But he said it remains to be seen what the next three months will bring. “Those are the questions that are still out there,” Oviatt said. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Cli- mate Prediction Center continues to forecast a higher probability of above-normal temperatures over the next three months across most of Oregon and Washington, along with an equal chance of high or low precipitation. Washington’s snowpack was similarly bleak at the start of the new year, at just 47% of normal statewide. It too has rebounded dra- matically, up to 88% as of Jan. 14. The South Puget Sound, Lower Yakima, Lower Snake, Spokane and Upper Columbia basins are all at or near average for snow water equivalent, after they were no higher than 65% of normal a few weeks ago. Like Oregon, SNOTEL sites in Washington have experi- enced several feet of new snow in the Cascades. 70s 80s 90s 100s warm front stationary front 110s high low BRIEFLY Man accused of stealing thousands of irrigation elbows Bend man who shot, killed woman sentenced to 9 years WALLA WALLA, Wash. — A Walla Walla man is accused of stealing $6,720 in irrigation elbows and selling them as scrap metal. Joseph A. Goins, 55, was charged with first-degree trafficking stolen property and first-degree stolen property possession Friday after officers learned of the irrigation elbows being sold for scrap at Stubblefield Salvage & Recycling. Officers found the reportedly missing items from Nelson Irrigation, records stated. Goins allegedly sold 24 pounds one day for $23.50 and 47 pounds another day for $47. Nelson Irrigation reported the retail value of the elbows at $1.68 each, and 4,000 of the parts were missing. The 11th Avenue salvage company recorded Goins’ identification from his driv- er’s license, records stated. He was arrested on Dec. 30, 2019, records stated, after an officer contacted at his home and he refused to tell the officer where from he got the elbows and said “he should just arrest him.” A later search of his home and vehicle found a box of new irrigation elbows and receipts from Stubblefield Salvage & Recy- cling, as well as Walla Walla Recycling, records stated. Goins’ arraignment has been scheduled for Jan. 27. BEND — A Bend man who fatally shot a Sisters woman at his apartment during their first date was sentenced on Tuesday to nine years in prison. KTVZ-TV reported Alan Peter Porci- ello, 37, also was sentenced to a year post- prison supervision by Deschutes County Circuit Judge Wells Ashby in the Jan. 12, 2019, killing of Jenny Cashwell. Porciello originally was charged with first-degree manslaughter and pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter. The two met on an online dating site and exchanged messages before agreeing to go hiking. Cashwell picked up Porciello and drove to the Pine Nursery Trail, returning several hours later. Cashwell had texted a friend during the outing, saying she didn’t expect to have a second date. In a court filing, Porciello was quoted as telling 911 dispatchers he had shot Cash- well in the chest and that he was “being facetious, acting like I was going to shoot her, and accidentally did.” He apologized in court, saying he takes “100 percent blame” for the shooting and that he “broke the governing rule of respon- sible gun ownership” — always treat a gun as if it’s loaded. — The Associated Press and Walla Walla Union-Bulletin Subscriber services: For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops or delivery concerns call 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1 SUBSCRIPTION RATES EZPay 52 weeks 26 weeks 13 weeks Local home delivery Savings (cover price) $13/month 60 percent $173.67 41 percent $91.86 38 percent $47.77 36 percent *EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge Single copy price: $1.50 Tuesday through Saturday Circulation Dept. 800-781-3214 ADVERTISING Regional Publisher and Revenue Director: • Christopher Rush 541-278-2669 • crush@eomediagroup.com Advertising Manager: • Angela Treadwell 541-966-0827 • atreadwell@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants: • Lora Jenkins 541-276-2214 • ljenkins@eastoregonian.com • Jeanne Jewett 541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com • Audra Workman 541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com Business Office Coordinator • Dayle Stinson 541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com Classified & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: call 541-966-0818 or email news@eastoregonian.com • To submit community events, calendar items and Your EO News: email community@eastoregonian.com or call Tammy Malgesini at 541-564-4539 or Renee Struthers at 541-966-0818. • To submit engagements, weddings and anniversaries: email rstruthers@eastoregonian.com or visit eastoregonian. com/community/announcements • To submit sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com Business Office Manager: 541-966-0824 COMMERCIAL PRINTING Production Manager: Mike Jensen 541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com
